1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a side mirror which is disposed on a vehicle for viewing areas to the sides of the vehicle.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventionally, a side mirror is provided on a vehicle so that an occupant such as a driver can view the sides and rear of the vehicle. As one example of this side mirror, there is a door mirror in which a mirror housing for housing a mirror body is mounted on a mirror base mounted on a body panel constituting a door of a vehicle. Since this door mirror allows an occupant to view the sides and rear of the vehicle by viewing the mirror body housed in the mirror housing, this door mirror is provided on the vehicle such that the mirror housing extends to the side from the vehicle (body panel). For this reason, the mirror housing is affected by wind when the vehicle is driven (hereinafter, referred to as driving wind). As a result of this driving wind, the mirror body housed in the mirror housing may be slightly vibrated; thus, the mirror body housed in the mirror housing may be vibrated.
Consequently, it is desirable that the rigidity of the mirror housing be sufficiently increased, so as to prevent vibration being generated in the mirror body, by mounting a bracket on the mirror base and fastening the mirror housing to the bracket so that the mirror housing surrounds the bracket (for example, refer to JP H10-86751A).
However, since the above-described door mirror has the structure in which the mirror housing is fastened to the bracket such that the mirror housing surrounds the bracket, the bracket is positioned in a housing space formed by the mirror body housed in the mirror housing and the mirror housing. In this case, in the door mirror, the housing space houses a rotation mechanism for automatically housing the door mirror, a mirror face adjustment mechanism for adjusting an angle of a mirror housed in the mirror housing, bases for a turn-signal lamp and a camera, various wirings, and the like. Consequently, if the bracket is positioned in the housing space, the structure of the housing space may become complex, and also the operation for mounting the rotation mechanism, the mirror face adjustment mechanism, the turn-signal lamp, the camera and the like on the mirror housing may become complex.
In addition, the maximum speed limit for a vehicle varies according to a region (country). Since the variations of this maximum speed are directly linked to the strength of the driving wind which the mirror housing is subjected to, when the same vehicle model is sold in a plurality of regions, different rigidity is required for the door mirrors each having the same specification. In this case, a bracket is required for a door mirror of a vehicle which is sold in regions having a high maximum speed limit, while a bracket is not always necessary for a door mirror of a vehicle which is sold in regions having a low maximum speed limit. However, if the vehicle provided with the door mirror having the structure in which the mirror housing is fastened to the bracket is sold in regions having a low maximum speed limit, extra costs are required because of the excessive rigidity of the door mirror. For this reason, it is required to newly manufacture a door mirror corresponding to regions having a low maximum speed limit, resulting in an increase in costs.